GIALLOROSSI YORKSHIRE BLOG
Antonio Mirante will be handed a rare start in goal for Roma against Chievo on Friday evening with regular keeper Robin Olsen ruled out with injury.
Mirante, a summer signing from Bologna, will be selected instead of Daniel Fuzato due to his superior experience. The veteran Italian has only come back from an injury recently, but will occupy the goals in the clash which puts Roma up against the bottom side in the league. Chievo are nine points from safety having only won one game all season, although they did take points from Roma in their meeting at Stadio Olimpico earlier in the season, which ended as a 2-2 draw. Eusebio Di Francesco will see this game as a chance to correct the mistakes from the reverse fixture and also build on the draw with Milan last weekend. Also missing from the game will be Kostas Manolas, who has picked up a slight knock. Ivan Marcano is likely to come into the side to replace him at centre-half. Meanwhile, Lorenzo Pellegrini is ruled out with suspension, but Steven Nzonzi and Bryan Cristante return from their one-match bans. Di Francesco confirmed at his press conference that Nicolo Zaniolo will start in midfield again, but insisted the youngster has even more scope for improvement despite his impressive displays recently. The coach said: "Zaniolo will start tomorrow as well. He's looking fresh, mentally and physically. He still needs to improve - there are times when he could be even more decisive - but he's still very young." The game kicks off at 7:30pm UK time and will be shown live on Premier Sports 1.
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With the summer transfer window now closed across all of the major European leagues, here's a look back at all the transfers involving Roma this summer, including the ones you might have missed.
This extensive list covers not only first team transfers, but transactions at Primavera and youth level as well. In: Ante Coric (€6m, Dinamo Zagreb) Ivan Marcano (free, Porto) Bryan Cristante (€5m loan + €15m obligation to buy, Atalanta) Justin Kluivert (€17.25m, Ajax) Antonio Mirante (€4m, Bologna) Javier Pastore (€24.7m, PSG) Davide Santon (€9.5m, Inter) Nicolo Zaniolo (€4.5m, Inter) William Bianda (€6m + bonuses, Lens) Daniel Fuzato (€450k, Palmeiras) Robin Olsen (€8.5m + bonuses, FC Copenhagen) Steven Nzonzi (€26.65m + bonuses, Sevilla) Nicolo Buso (free, Cesena Primavera) Gennaro Nigro (undisclosed, Players Academy) Pietro Boer (undisclosed, Venezia Giovanili) Out: Bogdan Lobont (retired) Arturo Calabresi (€200k, Bologna) Marco Tumminello (€6m, Atalanta) Lukasz Skorupski (€9m, Bologna) Radja Nainggolan (€24m, Inter) Alisson Becker (€62.5m + bonuses, Liverpool) Leandro Castan (free, Vasco Da Gama) Kevin Strootman (€25m, Marseille) Bruno Peres (loan + €6m option to buy, Sao Paulo) Umar Sadiq (loan, Rangers) Mirko Antonucci (loan, Pescara) Elio Capradossi (loan, Spezia) Gerson (loan, Fiorentina) Ezequiel Ponce (loan + option to buy, AEK Athens) Moustapha Seck (loan, Almere City) Edoardo Soleri (loan, Almere City) Gregoire Defrel (loan + option to buy, Sampdoria) Daniele Verde (loan, Real Valladolid) Maxime Gonalons (loan, Sevilla) Jose Machin (€800k, Pescara - last year's loan made permanent) Norbert Gyomber (€500k, Perugia) Juan Manuel Iturbe (€5m, Club Tijuana - last year's loan made permanent) Ervin Zukanovic (€1.2m, Genoa - last year's loan made permanent) Nicola Falasco (€90k, Avellino - last year's loan made permanent) Giammario Piscitella (free, Carpi) Kevin Mendez (undisclosed, Karpaty) Christian D'Urso (loan, Apollon Smyrnis) Matteo Ricci (undisclosed, Spezia) Lorenzo Di Livio (loan, Siena) Alessandro Bordin (loan, Perugia) Emanuele Spinozzi (loan, Piacenza) Eros De Santis (undisclosed, Siena) Ismail H'Maidat (released) Jacopo Ferri (released) Conor Borg (free, Hamrum Sport) Luca Petrungaro (free, Torino Primavera) Filippo Franchi (free, Matelica) Stefano Ciavattini (free, Reggina) Matias Nani (free, Belgrano) Giacomo Molinari (free, Catania Primavera) Rezan Corlu (loan, Lyngby BK) Niccolo Tofanari (undisclosed, Gubbio) Keba Coly (loan, Ascoli) Andrea Romagnoli (loan, Renate) George Ganea (undisclosed, Cluj) Lorenzo Crisanto (loan, Pistoiese) Lorenzo Valeau (loan, Ascoli) Lirim Kastrati (undisclosed, Bologna Primavera) Maoudo Diallo (undisclosed, Sconosciuto) Dario Anatrella (free, Paganese Primavera) Riccardo Cataldi (loan, Venezia Primavera) Francesco Laurenzi (undisclosed, Torino Primavera) Alessandro Barbarossa (loan, Perugia Primavera) Alessio Giuliani (released) Matteo Marini (released) Francesco Proietto (released) Marco Carruolo (released) Having watched replays of the games against Tottenham Hotspur and Barcelona in the International Champions Cup, here are the lessons that have been learnt from Roma's pre-season outings.
The Tottenham game Despite going 1-0 up very early on through Patrik Schick, Roma lost their ICC opener 4-1, with all the goals coming in the first half. Eusebio Di Francesco's team selection featured a mixture of first team players such as Kostas Manolas and Cengiz Under, with new recruits such as Javier Pastore and Bryan Cristante also included from the start. The main concern that most fans have with Pastore is his ability to play as a mezz'ala (one of the outer central midfielders in a 4-3-3). In this game, Pastore showed at times that he might be better in the position than expected. Although he lost possession too easily on occasion, he was more switched on in the defensive phase than many would have thought. There's no doubting Pastore's talent - it's a question of whether or not he can be clinical enough in his new role. One of the most-criticised purchases of the summer is Davide Santon. However, he did reasonably well at right-back in this game, even if he could've reacted quicker to prevent Spurs' third goal. The ex-Inter man defended well in other periods of the game and looked comfortable on the ball. Roma signed a new defensive midfielder on Tuesday in the shape of Steven Nzonzi, but before that, the Tottenham match gave an insight into the other two players competing for the role. The divisive Maxime Gonalons started in the position, but showed no signs of improving on last season's performances. He was too slow to react to the game, and consequently was at fault for Tottenham's fourth goal - a passage of play which looked like it was happening at double the speed Gonalons thought it was (the same could be said for Santon in that Spurs attack). In contrast, Daniele De Rossi was much calmer and more confident in possession when he replaced the Frenchman. This outing proved that De Rossi needs to be ahead of Gonalons in the pecking order. Roma's young players had mixed success in the game. Luca Pellegrini started at left-back and looked alright, but still a little bit raw. Perhaps he's still one season away from being good enough for the first team. Late in the game, new signing William Bianda made a short cameo in the position, but struggled. Even Cengiz Under, expected to be Roma's starting right winger for the season, showed signs that he still has room for improvement. He showed his talent and potential last season, but this year he needs to deliver more regularly. He wasn't clinical enough in the game against Spurs, with his strange overhead kick finish a prime example. Hopefully, like last season, once he gets one goal, more will start flying in. There were positive signs from both Justin Kluivert and Ante Coric. The pair of substitutes brought something new to the game, Kluivert looking dangerous with his pace and Coric showing he is not afraid to shoot. Should Coric get chances with the first team this year, his willingness to go for goal will come in handy. Ratings: Mirante 6 Santon 7 Manolas 6 Jesus 6 Lu Pellegrini 5 Gonalons 6 Cristante 7 Pastore 6.5 Under 6 Schick 6 Perotti 5 Subs: Fuzato N/A Florenzi N/A Marcano 6 Bianda 4 De Rossi 7 Lo Pellegrini 6 Strootman 6 Kluivert 7 Dzeko 7 Coric 7 The Barcelona game Roma beat the La Liga champions 4-2, with goals coming from Stephan El Shaarawy, Alessandro Florenzi, Bryan Cristante and Diego Perotti. This game saw more first teamers come into the starting lineup, while Barcelona used the opportunity to test out some of their younger players. Roma started the game in a sluggish manner (travelling over 1,000 miles probably didn't help), but began to work hard and showed resilience, a characteristic we have become used to in Di Francesco's Roma. Kluivert, this time a starter, continued to impress, showing an impressive work rate. He was as fast going back as he was going forward; clearly, this is a young man determined to help the team in all areas of the pitch, with or without the ball. Robin Olsen, making his Roma debut in goal, was decent, making a couple of smart saves. The jury is still out over whether he'll be a success this season, but he got an important 45 minutes under his belt in a Roma jersey. Despite impressing against Spurs, Santon wasn't as good in this game, deployed as a left-back. It's a position he's used to playing, but the majority of Barcelona's attacks came down that flank, perhaps indicating room for improvement in the Italian's defensive play. Another summer signing who was a little shaky was Ivan Marcano. The centre-back has been brought in with a wealth of experience, but didn't look like he'll cause any problems for Kostas Manolas and Federico Fazio by breaking up their partnership. He wasn't dreadful - he just didn't look to be on the same level as Roma's current first-choice centre-backs. Someone who did make an impact, though, was Cristante. The midfielder helped pull Roma back into the game, also scoring his first goal in giallorosso. In the end, Roma's experience showed against the youthful Barca outfit, but it should be of concern that the Blaugrana youngsters managed to outperform Roma's seniors in sections of the game. Ratings: Olsen 7 Florenzi 7 Manolas 6 Marcano 5 Santon 5 De Rossi 6 Lo Pellegrini 6 Strootman 6 Kluivert 7 Dzeko 6 El Shaarawy 7 Subs: Mirante 6 Fazio 6 Jesus 7 Lu Pellegrini 7 Gonalons 6 Cristante 7 Pastore 6 Perotti 6 Schick 6 Crossover themes: In both games, we saw Roma looking resilient, but sometimes the team were too slow to react when defending in the box. This led to poor goals being conceded, which could have been prevented by better marking, or timing the jump before a header more accurately. However, Di Francesco will take positives from these experiences. Some of the new signings played well in both games, notably Cristante and Kluivert. These are players who can have an impact on the first team this year, and will help Roma gain points. One area that won't be as strong as last season is the goalkeeping department. Whilst Olsen did well in his outing, one theme that occurred between both him and Mirante in each game was poor distribution. Passes from the goal area sometimes went astray, which rarely happened under Alisson last season. This should improve with time, as the new keepers get to know the players in front of them better, but the defence will have to be switched on if it continues the way it has started. Few players played poorly in both games, but as discussed, Marcano has shown little to worry the established order. Further upfield, apart from his goal from the penalty spot against Barcelona, Diego Perotti was pretty ineffectual in both games, while Schick didn't see as much of the ball as he would've liked. He'll have to stay on his toes in games like these in the future to make the most of chances when they arrive. All in all, there have been some useful tests for Roma this pre-season. Fitness levels have been restored and Roma have learnt a lot about themselves as a unit. Di Francesco has got to know his new players, and some of them will have a big chance to make a positive impact this year. Even though the games were played at a good intensity, it will be quite different on Sunday, when the Serie A season gets underway against Torino. Competitive football is a different beast altogether. Roma will have to be ready, using the lessons they have learnt from pre-season to start the season in a positive manner. Antonio Mirante, Roma's new goalkeeper, celebrates his 35th birthday today.
He may have been brought in as a backup, but the experienced Serie A stopper can have a major impact on this team. This summer, Roma lost two keepers. Second-choice Lukasz Skorupski left for Bologna in search of more playing time, and veteran Bogdan Lobont retired at the age of 40. The form of Alisson had frozen Skorupski out of the team, while Lobont decided it was finally time to hang up the gloves after an extensive playing career. As Skorupski headed for Bologna, Antonio Mirante came the other way. It was a shrewd signing from Roma that could go under the radar, given the high-profile acquisitions of Javier Pastore and Justin Kluivert. But Mirante can bring a lot to this team. Mirante has the right mix of attributes that means he can replace Skorupski and Lobont in one move. With eleven consecutive years of Serie A experience under his belt, he brings the knowledge and the leadership that was lost with the retirement of Lobont - something that was far more important to the club than people on the outside may have realised. But unlike Lobont, he is likely to play, offering decent competition to first-choice Alisson. Mirante has been brought in as the number two, the role played by Skorupski last season. And whilst Skorupksi was desperate to play more, it seems Mirante will be happy with his role as a backup. At this stage of his career, and at a club of this magnitude, he knows he is not expected to be the first-choice. His experience means he will accept this, in a way that a younger keeper like Skorupski, quite understandably, wouldn't have. This will allow Alisson to flourish even more as number one next season (if he stays at the club) and will give him a new mentor to learn from. We may not see much of Mirante on the pitch - he will probably be limited to Coppa Italia appearances barring any injury or suspension to Alisson - but he is a good enough keeper to rely upon when needed. He has made more than 300 appearances in those eleven consecutive years in Serie A, establishing himself as one of the league's best Italian keepers despite never being called up to the national team. He has made more than enough saves during that time to show his quality. When he signed for Roma, he admitted that this is the "right moment in my career" to make this step. Mirante acknowledges the role he has been brought in to play, but is also well aware of the qualities he can bring to the pitch when required. He also adds to the Italian influence in the team, which has been lacking a little over the past few seasons. Mirante's signing may not bring the same hype as the likes of Pastore, Kluivert or even Cristante, but the effect that he can have on Roma should not be underestimated. Tanti auguri, Antonio. |
samuel bannister
Founder and editor of Giallorossi Yorkshire, who is also a columnist for Roma's official website about the women's team. Categories
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